I have been noticing that the event site seems to be turning into a dog park/litterbox.. I never see a single dog on a leash, yet see the huge sign saying that all dogs must be on leashes every time I use the bathroom. I saw many dogs sunday that just seemed to be roaming around on their own while their owner was off kiteboarding or whatever.. One dog of a kiteboarder who will remain nameless(mostly because I dont have a name to give to animal control) came over by me while I was adjusting my sail and left a nice fresh pile right next to me, I never saw it anywhere near an owner for the next couple hours I was there so...watch out for the tall grass.

This is Hood River. Everybody's dogs are friendly and wouldn't bother anyone. Just ask the owners. Hardly anyone leashes their dogs, even on the sand beach where the kids play in the waterfront park. They are pissing and pooping everywhere. Don't stress, there is nothing you can do about it. The Port authority does not enforce any of it's own regulations that are posted on the signs. My son worked for the port as a lawn maintenance guy last summer, and the policy is not to bother anyone with rules or regulations. So enjoy, and get on the water as quick as possible, no dogs there.

Dog runs across sail, damaging it. Dog owner unconcerned, at least until sail owner talks to him directly. Dog owner says he'll try to get sail owner a deal on some obscure sporting goods. Dog continues to run loose.

Another sail owner informs dog owner that if his sail is damaged, dog owner will drop everything, drive damaged sail to Hood River loft, pay for new custom sail, and deliver said new sail to sail owner the minute it is completed (just as that sail owner did after he cut a bud's mast top in half during horseplay on the water).

Dog spent rest of day on leash.

GOOD owner!

At Corps parks, phone 541-296-1181 and insist that a ranger come out and start writing tickets. At the Event Site, take the city and the dog owner to small claims court for the cost of sail repair or replacement. When you see a dog crap on the lawn, rub his belly ... making sure his squirming back and especially his collar get thoroughly ground into his mess. Hell, rub it all OVER his furry carcass if the owner won't pick it up.

When any dog is perceived as a threat -- absolutely if it bites anyone -- report it to any county or state police agency. In WA, it will be automatically be declared a dangerous dog and thereafter be permanently and physically confined to the owner's property, and it will be put to death the next time it is even perceived to threaten anyone. Oregon's dog laws
(see http://tinyurl.com/6wggpvg ) are similar, and most certainly apply to the Event Site. Loose dogs causing any form of bother to others are legally classified as a "public nuisance", and both states' laws provide many ways and punishments to deter violators, including both misdemeanor and felony charges, depending on the degree of the offense, against the dog owner. It takes very little to hit the felony threshold.

The people of both states are very dog-friendly; the laws of both states absolutely kick errant dog owners' asses IF citizens provide evidence and details of offenses. One dog owner made the news by trying to leave WA permanently to save his aggressive (so declared after its first offense, by law) dog from the death penalty after it was perceived by another passerby as threatening. WA interceded, put the dog down, and prosecuted the owner. Two strikes, in the eyes of any passerby who feels threatened, is an automatic and irrevocable death sentence for the dog and potentially years in jail for the owner. That's why my sweet puppies, who with their predecessors for > 40 years have traveled with us all over North America, have become stay-at-home dogs since we moved to WA; I'm not wiling to take the chance that some parent may feel that my doggie endangered his kid, and I'd hate to have to go get some guy's sail repaired or replaced while he waited in his wetsuit for me on a windy day.

No city, county, or port authority has any authority to waive any of those laws, but without detailed reports, the law cannot act, either. That's what eyewitnesses, cell phones, and camcorders are for. If we don't use them, it's our own fault the scofflaw problem goes unsolved. The last time a dog sunk its teeth into my arm in the Gorge, I made damned sure the bite was reported in both WA and in the owner's home state of NM, 1,300 miles away.

To give you some idea of the depths of some people's total lack of concern for other people, a guy watched an Event Site dog piss all over his gear and complained to the owner. Her only response was to deny it, hit his sail, and curse him out. She compounded all that by screaming, "ISOBARS!" -- either a slur no innocent man should have to endure or an accolade to which few can aspire.

She's fortunate her victim didn't take the time to file charges, including public nuisance, property damage, and escalation of character.

Im a dog friendly person and have no problem with dogs being allowed to stretch their legs, but theres a place for it and a right way to do it. The event site is not the best place and letting your dog roam free while you go elsewhere is certainly not the way to do it. It seems to be worse this year, just last weekend I was surrounded by a wolf pack, almost bowled over by a dog the size of a small pony, watched people chasing dogs off their sails and saw the aforementioned nice steamy pile being made. It might be time for animal control to come out and start giving some tickets..

Last month i called the port about the bird crap all over the lawn. You could not walk or set down a sail or kite. They said there's nothing they can do about it. At least the dogs keep the duck and geese away. LOL

At least the bird crap doesnt smell when it gets on your shoe. I choose to imagine that those are just soil plugs pulled out from aerating the nice lawn But step in one pile of dog crap and that smell will follow you for days

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